Tribute to J.D.

It's only right that I post a brief tribute to the great J.D. Salinger on this blog. I just found out today he passed away on Wednesday. He is probably my favorite author, and a writer whose style I would like to emulate even to the smallest degree. It's interesting to me that this summer I finally bought a copy of Catcher in the Rye with the original cover art and also read Nine Stories for the first time. It may seem like this is the only book I've read in the last year, since I so often mention it, but I adore Catcher In the Rye.  I can often hear the voice of Holden Caulfield in my head calling someone "phony" or "crumby". I love the flawed characters and Holden's sardonic voice, which Salinger mastered. I'm not sure why so many teenagers identify with this book but I can certainly identify with the way Holden views people. Salinger pinpointed what was so unnerving about human nature when he decided to use the word "phony". There are about a million different ways people are phony in the book and in reality, and I appreciate Salinger calling them out on it. Phoebe, Holden's little sister is the only person who is completely genuine and the best thing about this book for me is that it inspires me to want to be genuine like Phoebe, and throw away all the phoniness I've acquired in the adult world. I would like to read more of his work. I think I'm going to go purchase Franny and Zooey right now.

I love the cover art of this book, even the title font is great. The graphic looks like a Merry-Go-Round on fire and could be considered a metaphor for the book.  

Audible Dwelling

So I did a little research and apparently the space pods are speakers that can record and transmit sound. I like the idea that these structures were made with the intent of disrupting everyday life. When I first saw these in the parking lot I was thrilled and baffled. Not only do they look like 1960's toasters, but they are lime green.

They will be in Columbus through March, and then they'll be transported either to California or their eventual destination back in Copenhagen. This article says a little more about them.

I'm fascinated with the dual space pods outside of CCAD. I'm not sure what they're for but they make me feel like it's the future, or the 60's. Either way time travel is cool.

Le Petit Prince

The Little Prince was not on my reading list, but I bought it while ago and had been wanting to read it. It's a beautiful book. Somehow I missed all its depth when I read it as a kid.

" I shouldn't have listened to her,' he confided to me one day. 'You must never listen to flowers. You must look at them and smell them. Mine perfumed my planet, but I didn't know how to enjoy that. The business about the tiger claws, instead of annoying me, ought to have moved me...'"

"And he confided further, 'In those days, I didn't understand anything. I should have judged her according to her actions, not her words. She perfumed my planet and lit up my life. I should never have run away! I ought to have realized the tenderness underlying her silly pretensions. Flowers are so contradictory! But I was too young to know how to love her.'"

Twenty-Ten

I've never been good at New Year's Resolutions but since I'm particularly excited about 2010, maybe I'll give it another go.

1. Try not to get pepper in eyes. (Harder than it sounds).

2. Wake up before noon...everyday...

3. Go to bed before 4...everyday...

4. Read 5 books from my "To Read" List. War and Peace, Anna Karenina, The Bell Jar, Wuthering Heights, Love in The Time of Cholera, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, A Cat's Cradle, Atlas Shrugged, Franny and Zooey, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenence, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Catch 22, The History of Love. Ok so that's 13, but 1 book a month and 2 after a shorter book. Aim high...?

5. Excercise. Sometimes.

6. Listen to all the music I've accumulated on my Ipod over the last few years. There are about 50 albums on it which I've never listened to and would like to. I tend to stick to my favorites, so it will be an effort to branch out.

7. Graduate.

8. Find a (sweet) job. (Thought I should specify)

#'s 2 and 3 may contribute to goals 7 and 8 , while 4 and 6 may impede them.

Sometimes...

Sometimes when I cook I pretend I'm on a cooking show. Delusions of grandeur. What can I say.

So this is the new year...

"And I don't feel any different..."

To contradict these Death Cab lyrics, for once this year does feel entirely different. On New Year's those lyrics always cross my mind, and in the past they rang so true. This is one reason I love Death Cab for Cutie, Ben Gibbard always seems to touch on some obscurity that I really identify with. The difference of a year is usually felt not when the clock strikes twelve but over the course of a year. The new year is often anticlimatic because instead of a new year, it's merely tomorrow. This January 1st I was in the middle of quoting these lyrics when I realized this year they were not true. As those lyrics crossed my mind I felt immediately that something is different, even from yesterday. There's been a motion in time greater than the flip from Tuesday to Wednesday. For no reason I can think of I feel rashly optimistic about 2010.  I'm not sure why. I harbor no bad feelings toward 2009. It was mostly pleasant and I have no need to discard it.  I have no reason to think 2010 will be some magical year and yet I feel anticipation for the future. For no reason at all I'm excited beyond belief.